Binance hack asset coverage is now complete, with $6.3 billion replaced. Customers await the zero-knowledge proof to verify their backing.
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Binance said on November 12, 2026, that asset coverage was complete following its $6.3 billion hack on October 29, 2026. The exchange also published a new Proof of Reserves snapshot, but the accompanying cryptographic proof needed for customers to independently check their backing remained pending.
Summary
Key takeaways
- Binance used three company funding sources to replace affected assets.
- The latest reserve snapshot awaits its zero-knowledge proof.
- PCAOB guidance distinguishes reserve reports from financial statement audits.
How Binance funded asset coverage after the hack
Binance funded replacement assets through the Secure Asset Fund for Users (SAFU), part of its Futures Insurance Funds, and its corporate treasury. Its October 31, 2026, recovery update reported more than $6.34 billion in company funds set aside, with replacement coverage at 90%.
The exchange said the futures insurance money belonged to the company, not customers. Transfers came from balances above its risk-framework requirement, and the remaining reserves continued to satisfy that requirement. Binance also committed to rebuilding SAFU to approximately $1 billion.
By November 4, 2026, asset replacement had reached approximately 98%, Binance said. It bought tokens through market and over-the-counter transactions; limited liquidity made the remaining tokens slower to source.
In its November 12, 2026, update on asset coverage after the hack, Binance wrote: “Binance has completed coverage of assets impacted in the security incident.”
Earlier balance disclosures and withdrawal figures measured different periods. Between October 1 and October 31, 2026, reported customer USDT holdings declined 7.95% to 29.48 billion tokens. Ethereum holdings fell 3.80% to 3.65 million ETH, while Bitcoin balances increased 0.52% to 692,187 BTC. USDT reserve coverage moved from 103.88% to 100%; Bitcoin coverage stood at 100.04%.
Those figures preceded the reopening of withdrawals on November 1, 2026. During the first nine and a half hours after reopening, Binance reported $4.649 billion in withdrawals and $1.01 billion in deposits—roughly $3.64 billion in net outflows.
Santiment’s November 6, 2026, research separately measured approximately 28,316 BTC in net departures from Binance-associated wallets between the attack and November 5, 2026. Santiment cautioned against attributing the entire movement to the hack because the decline in its measured Bitcoin balance began beforehand.
New Proof of Reserves snapshot awaits verification
According to Binance, once the newest zero-knowledge proof has been produced, customers will be able to independently confirm backing of at least 1:1. Its system checks balance calculations without publicly exposing individual holdings.
Earlier verification rounds used dated snapshots. The verification finished on November 2, 2026, examined a snapshot taken on October 31, 2026, of ten cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin, Ethereum, USDT, BNB, Solana and XRP, while a subsequent snapshot from November 4, 2026, broadened the scope to 44 tokens. For that earlier round, Binance estimated 50–60 hours of proof-generation work.
Binance’s reserves instructions describe a Merkle tree that lets customers check the inclusion of their balances in reported account totals. Users can locate their record ID and Merkle leaf in their account’s verification section, then select a date to see the assets and balances recorded.
The methodology includes wallet-ownership checks and customer-balance snapshots. Binance says its zero-knowledge circuit requires each account’s total net balance to be nonnegative and included in the aggregate. Changing an account ID or balance changes the Merkle root.
Reserve reports differ from formal audits
The PCAOB’s Office of the Investor Advocate distinguishes Proof of Reserves reports from financial statement audits. Its March 2023 advisory describes reserve reports as point-in-time asset information that does not necessarily establish liabilities, borrowing arrangements or customers’ legal rights.
The office says these reports provide no assurance about internal controls or governance. Proof of Reserves engagements also fall outside PCAOB inspection and auditing standards, even when a registered accounting firm performs them.
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Article produced with the assistance of artificial intelligence and reviewed by the editorial team.
